The New England Patriots are betting favorites by 24 points on WagerWeb.com this week against the Philadelphia Eagles. That is not a misprint. Twenty-four points!!!!
OK, the Eagles (5-5) aren't exactly a powerhouse, but they were expected to be a playoff team. And they have won three of four to pull within a game of the final NFC wild-card spot. They have even won three straight on the road. So, 24 points!!??
Well, Philly starting quarterback Donovan McNabb (ankle, thumb) will miss Sunday night's game, which certainly hampers Philly's offense. McNabb hurt the thumb on his throwing hand early against the Miami Dolphins last Sunday and left after injuring his ankle in the second quarter. He did not practice all week.
A.J. Feeley, who led the Eagles to a pair of touchdowns in a 17-7 win over the Dolphins, gets the start for Philadelphia. It will be his first start since he led Miami over Cleveland on Dec. 26, 2004. He was 4-1 as a starter in the last five regular-season games in 2002 for Philly and 3-5 in eight starts with the Dolphins in '04, including a win over eventual Super Bowl champion New England.
"Every team can be beaten, that's a given," said Eagles safety Brian Dawkins. "There's no team that's played the game that can't be beaten. We, as a team, want to go in there and do what we can so we can get a win up there."
These are the 10-0, record-breaking Patriots. The team that likely will clinch the AFC East on Sunday, the one that is favored to actually run the table.The Patriots are averaging 41 points and nearly 437 yards per game, and only one of their opponents, the Colts, has come within 16. Tom Brady's QB rating this season is 134.0 -- well above Peyton Manning's single-season record of 121.1 in 2004. With 38 touchdown passes, Brady is primed to break Manning's record of 49, and his 74.0 completion percentage is above Ken Anderson's record of 70.6 in 1982.
And there's Randy Moss, whose 16 touchdown receptions are six off Jerry Rice's NFL record of 22 set in 1987.
"I'm still in a dream, man, and I'm loving every second of it," Moss said. "It's too good to be true.
I'm with the Patriots. What else do you want?"
"I have a hard time, as I think about it, thinking of anybody that's done it better for 10 games than what the Patriots have done right now," Eagles coach Andy Reid said.
"Everything seems a little more poignant when you're sitting here having to play them and they're doing it at the present. There have been some good offenses before, but they're doing it very well right now."
Expect a ton of blitzes from Philly. The Eagles have only one sack in the past three games, and the Patriots have allowed only 10 all season. So Philly will turn to the demoted Jevon Kearse in an attempt to improve their pressure on the pocket.
Kearse, a the three-time Pro Bowler performer was benched last week, losing his left end job to Juqua Thomas, and wasn't even active for the Eagles' victory over the Miami Dolphins. He won't start on Sunday, but Kearse will be active and play on third down and in obvious passing situations, defensive coordinator Jim Johnson said.
"Javon is going to play a little more this week, and we'll see if we can get some better pressure," Johnson said. The Eagles have just 11 takeaways this season, five in the last seven games.
The lowdown: Eagles RB Brian Westbrook leads the league in yards from scrimmage and is coming off a career-high 148-yard rushing effort vs. Miami last week. Combine that fact and that New England's defense ranks fifth in the league in passing yards per game (181.3), while recording 29 sacks, and expect him to get the ball 30-plus times again. I just can't turn down 24 points, so take Philly to cover. Barely.
Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots Betting Trends
The Eagles are 5-5 ATS.
The Eagles are 3-2 ATS away.
The Eagles are 1-1 ATS as the underdog.
The Eagles are 1-0 ATS as an away underdog.
The Patriots are 9-1 ATS.
The Patriots are 4-0 ATS at home.
The Patriots are 9-1 ATS as the favorite.
The Patriots are 4-0 ATS as a home favorite
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